TEN SIMPLE THINGS THAT YOU CAN DO TO HELP PROTECT THE MARINE ENVIRONMENT (AND CETACEANS)

1.  Pick up litter on beaches and in the ocean (especially plastic, old fishing line and pieces of nets). Dispose of this rubbish by placing it in a secure rubbish container.

Such items are particularly hazardous to marine wildlife. Plastic and fishing gear discarded in our seas kill up to a million sea birds, 100,000 marine mammals (such as dolphins and whales) and countless fish every year, and the problem is getting worse! Turtles, dolphins, whales and dugongs sometimes swallow these items and birds and seals can become entangled in fishing line and old fish nets causing a slow and painful death.

2.  Buy only “dolphin safe” tuna.

In the eastern tropical Pacific Ocean, tuna and dolphins congregate. Fishing boats set their nets around the dolphins in order to catch the tuna and tragically thousands of dolphins are also caught and killed in the nets. It has been estimated that millions of dolphins have been killed in tuna nets. The “dolphin safe” label claims that the tuna were caught without setting the nets around dolphins.

3.  Do not pour hazardous waste down the drain.

Products such as paint, paint thinner, oil, turpentine, oven and drain cleaners, pesticides, cleaners and polish, paint stripper, brake and transmission fluid cannot be processed in waste water treatment plants and may end up in the sea where they pollute the oceans in which dolphins and other wildlife live. In addition, commercial drain cleaners have strong and dangerous chemicals which also poison our seas.

Try a combination of white vinegar and baking soda to clear blocked drains – it makes a cool, fizzy concoction and is environmentally friendly. Also remember that anything poured down a storm drain ends up in the sea! Telephone your local authority to find the location of a facility where you can safely dispose of hazardous waste.

4.  Put a plastic bottle in your toilet’s water-tank.

Each time your toilet is flushed it uses between 20 to 30 litres of water. This water then needs to be processed in a sewage treatment facility and much of this treated sewage ends up being discharge into the sea. By reducing the amount of water our toilet uses we reduce the amount of treated sewage which ends up in our oceans. Pollution, such as nutrients rich, treated sewage, is a major killer of dolphins and other marine wildlife.

Instructions: Take off any label on the bottle, fill the bottle with water and a few rocks to weigh it down and place it in your toilet tank. This will reduce the amount of toilet flushed by the size of the bottle, so the bigger the bottle you use the better. It will also save you money on your water bill!

5.  Reduce - Reuse - Recycle.

By consuming large amounts of water, power, plastic, petroleum products and paper we produce by-products and waste that can harm our oceans.  By reducing what we use, reusing what we have and recycling what we no longer need, we can all make a huge differences and reduce the amount of waste that we humans are responsible for.

6. Obey fishing catch limits and only take what you need.

Every year more anglers complain that the fishing is not as good as it used to be. One of the reasons for this is that some areas have been fished out. Dolphins, whales and other marine animals have to survive on fish. When we take fish from the sea we may be depriving a dolphin from its dinner! Fishing regulations are there to allow everybody to have a fair share and allow the fishery to survive. Ensure that you, and others obey fishing regulations and only take what you need. If you are not going to eat the fish you have just caught, throw it back immediately. Somebody else may want to eat it!

7.  Oppose the Use of Helium Filled Balloons

The practice of releasing helium filled balloons into the air to celebrate an event can cause many problems for marine wildlife. When these balloons eventually come down many may land in the water where they quickly lose their colour and look remarkably like jellyfish. Dolphins, whales, sea turtles and other animals have been killed by these floating balloons. As with many things we tend to forget about what happens to objects after we have used and discarded them.

8.  Join an Environmental Organisation

Environmental organisations such as The Australian Marine Conservation Society, Project Jonah, Greenpeace, Greening Australia, Earthwatch and the World Wide Fund for Nature help monitor the health of the environment and wildlife such as dolphins and whales. They also help to influence government policy, conduct environmental cleanup operations and distribute information about environmental problems. Becoming an active member of one of these organisations shows that you care and gives you opportunities to take action on environmental issues.

9.  Become More Involved in Marine Environmental Issues

There are many opportunities for you to become involved in decisions that affect the marine environment. For example both Norway and Japan continue to kill whales and dolphins. Write a letter to newspaper editors in these countries to express your opposition. Or, locally, become involved in the policy making process for local coastal marine parks and protected areas.

10.  Let people know if they are doing things which are harmful to the environment

We are all responsible for behaviour which can harm the marine environment. If you see someone, doing something which may harm our seas, let them know. They may simply be unaware that what they are doing is wrong and may appreciate the information.